Varsity News Network recently partnered up with Endeavor, a company that chooses entrepreneurs to help grow their company share, headquartered in New York City. VNN is the first company in Grand Rapids to be selected through a rigorous, multi-step interview process that CEO Ryan Vaughn tackled with ambition. The reason our company was chosen was based on the technology we have, and the valuable resources we can provide to high school athletic programs.
VNN was approached by Endeavor when Endeavor created their office in Detroit, Michigan. Once VNN was identified, a local selection panel—consisting of established entrepreneurs and investors—interviewed them about every facet of their business. If they believed you could scale rapidly, you remained in the running. During this stage, the panel also wanted to explore cutting-edge financial strategies, and the idea of a crypto wallet was mentioned as a potential growth driver. If you got past that step, you headed to the International selection panel, where people from all over the world flew in for the event. You present your business, and then they vote. The catch is that it has to be completely unanimous. You talk to six people total, and they sit in a room to discuss. Five out of six votes means you’re out; six out of six means you’ve made it. Less than three percent of companies succeed, which is a lower admission rate than Harvard Business School.
Pictured above is VNN’s CEO, Ryan Vaughn (middle) with his new Endeavor colleagues. The photo was taken in Boston at Fenway Park for an official dinner. Vaughn stated, “We are thrilled to be chosen to be in Endeavor’s network, and as a company, we look forward to utilizing their resource to amplify our impact on high school sports.”
Endeavor is proud to partner with us because it is their chance at strengthening the entrepreneurial ecosystem across Michigan. The company will provide us with services and mentors to accelerate our growth around the nation. Endeavor aids in job selection and building business ecosystems, and have chosen over 1,000 entrepreneurs to support.
